Iowa truckers agree that upcoming construction on Interstate 380 will be worth the hassle.
A new project aimed at helping the flow of traffic on Interstate 380 between the exit to Swisher and Shueyville to just south of US Highway 30 has been set. The project will widen the interstate from four to six lanes, and transform the airport interchange at Wright Brothers Boulevard into a Diverging Diamond Interchange. Work on the Wright Brothers Interchange will start late summer to early fall of 2024, and will take around two years. The widening of the interstate will start in 2025, and is expected to last until 2027.
”There’s obviously a lot of freight movements, a lot of semi trucks, big loads coming through the area. All of those can easily drive a diverging diamond in a safe manner in a very efficient manner and just kind of flow through those left turns,” said Cathy Cutler, a transportation planner with the Iowa Department of Transportation.
Truckers who frequent the area say that, while construction is frustrating while it’s happening, the road improvements will make the hassle worth it.
”Any road improvements are a real plus. It’s pain in the butt maybe when the construction is going on with the backups, with the traffic you know, with the construction itself, but after completion, it’s always a real plus for commercial drivers and also for residential drivers I think,” said Charles Ratley, a trucker of more than 20 years, to KCRG News.
”I think it’d be a lot safer if they added another lane. There are a lot of people from my observation commuting from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids. I do, I see there’s a need for more to make it safer,” said Donna Nielsen, another driver.
”So really, just a lot of added capacity out there on I-380 and I honestly think people can see the need for it,” Cutler added.